Best Pizza in DC?

Question

Hello!
Hey, traveling to DC in about a month. I truly believe great pizza is found in the sauce and crust, cheese is just an after taste. Anyway, if someone can provide 1.) Best DC flavor pizza and 2.) Best unique place (Decor/ambience) for pizza?

Thanks!

Answer

Ella's for sure:
http://search.cityguide.aol.com/washington/restaurants/ellas-wood-fired-pizza/v-118129099/reviews

Answer

Avoid Ledo's. You'll never like the sauce. It's got some sort of sweetness to it that you just won't like, and they use this flavor on everything they sell, including the hot buffalo wings. If you insist on trying Ledo's, then go with the original one in Adelphi. Otherwise, the best NY style pizza in this area is probably Gianni's in Severn, MD.

Answer

I plead ignorance to what is genuinely great NY pizza (Whenever I'm in NY and ask friends and relatives to be taken to a great pizza place-- Joe's, Grimaldi'ss, Patsy's, whatever-- inevitably THAT place is way too crowded and we end up at some just-average place), but I second Vace as the "go to" place for an unpretentious and flavorful really good pie in DC proper. Their toppings aren't anything special, but the sauce/crust/cheese combo more than makes up for it. As for 2 Amy's, I just don't "get" it.

Answer

2 Amys margherita pizza is minimalist and sublime. Amazing how much flavor can be gotten from a tomato wash!

The Atomica at Pizza Paradiso is excellent. This has a peppercorn salami topping.

In Arlington, the red and yellow tomato pie at Pie-Tanza is perfect.

All of the above are extremely thin crust, my favorite style.

Vace is also excellent, as noted above, with the sauce put over the cheese to keep the crust from getting soggy. But is take-out only.

Answer

In Alexandria, Valentino's is great for crust and ambiance. Generally, the background music is all Frank. Be sure to ask for the crust extra-crispy. The food quality is best when the owner, who looks like a cross between Sean Penn and Bono, is there.

For D.C., 2Amys is the best.

Answer

We just tried Valentino's over the weekend and I totally agree - it is WONDERFUL! What a find! I loved the garlic knots! And, you can buy a variety of pizzas by the slice, so if you are like me and my hubby and can never agree on a pie, you can each get exactly what you want. I'm also anxious to try their pastas.

Answer

I still like Mama Lucia's - at least, the Bethesda branch remains NY-like. Also, haven't been in years, but Giuseppe's in Rockville used to be NY style.

Answer

Few will agree, and many have their own favorite local joint. I'll contribute yet another name. "Atlantis" in the Bradlee Shopping Center in Alexandria. Their "Greek Pizza" is not to be missed....

Answer

Please - this board has been through the Ledo's thing before (though it was a few years ago). The original owners sold the NAME only. They own only one store, the one near UMD. The others are owned by various people. I agree that some are okay, such as the one on Columbia Pike, but they are not bound to much of anything along the lines of the original. 

Another pie to try is Pomodorro's in NOVA (few locations). They serve up slices as well. 

Lastly, a unique one is the pizza at Pan Am family restaurant in Vienna (Pan Am center). Real Mozz, great sauce with tom chunks in it, definitely worth a try.

Answer

2 AMY'S. Nothing else compares.

Answer

There is not such thing as the best pizza, it is all in what you prefer. I like the pizza at 2 Amy's, but have friends who hate it. Personally, I hate Ledo's pizza.

Answer

I can't really understand how people can think of Ledo's Pizza as best pizza.
Maybe memories as kids growing up eating Ledo's in their original locations, spur fond taste experiences, but I have yet to try a Ledo's pizza that pleased more than a home delivery pizza.
Best never came to mind, worst did come to mind at the Tyson's location, also Reston.
I have yet to taste any pizza in Northern Va that comes close to Ny, or Atlantic City.
Emilios in Sterling does use fresh wood burning oven crusted pizzas with Boar's head meats and fresh cut veggies such as eggplant and zucchini, and even red bliss potatoes and great cheeses.

Answer

I like 2 Amy's as well. However I used to get cheap delivery style pizza from pizza movers, loved that stuff.

Answer

Ledo's is terrible. The poster who descirbed it as a saltine, ketchup and cheese product hit the nail on the head. But, as others have indicated, people who grew up here love it. It takes all kinds. Vace's is very good and, if you are in the MD burbs, Potomac Pizza is also good.

Answer

I liked Ledo's at the original place both for it's food and ambience, but that was many years ago.
Either my tastes have changed or the pizza at the original is much better, but I now think Ledo's, at least at the new locations, is downright vile. I guess you either love it ot hate it. Also Mama Lucia, not very good, but for some reason popular.
I like Vace's and Pizza Paradisio and 2 Amy's and Ricciuti's (in Olney), but there are no doubt others as good. Usually a wood oven is a real good sign.

Answer

Not being a native of NOVA and having only been to the Ledo's in Reston, i was not impressed. Other stuff on the menu (toasted ravioli comes to mind) was good but not the pizza. Seems like it is mainly those that grew up eating it. In North Arlington, I like The Italian Store but their sandwiches are to die for. Valentino's in Alexandria is probably the best I've had in NOVA. The one in Georgetown on M Street is good but the name slips my mind...

Answer

I don't know that there is reall a DC pizza, more of a steak town I have always found. If you are looking for a quality pizza though I would suggest going to Bertucci's and getting a brick oven pizza. There is one in Foggy Bottom and another in DuPont. They're good and the atmosphere is excellent. Bertucci's is also kid friendly if you are coming with your family.

Answer

Albertos on P Street in Dupont Circle does a mean Chicago Pie. Palisades on MacArthur in upper Georgetown is pretty good too.

Answer

I will add to the Valentino's suggestion, but am surprised nobody has mentioned Z Pizza. I have always really enjoyed their pie--and their health conscious menu.

Answer

I love Ledo's. But I think it is an acquired taste. I grew up on it, and while the franchises aren't nearly as good, I haven't found them to be vile. I actually had some from Tyson's for dinner tonight, and it was pretty tasty.

Answer

Ledo's? When I first read that I thought it was a big joke!

the best pizza is 2Amy's.

the best take-out pizza is Vace's.

Try them! Your belly with thank you!

Answer

Thanks everyone for your suggestions, I'm the original writer of this blog. So, it seesm that the three places that are getting votes are 1.) 2 Amy's (kind of kid-friendly), 2.) Paridiso, and 3.) Ledo's (only the Langley Park location).

Thanks again, and if you have any last suggestion on any of these three, I'd be happy to listen in...

Thanks again,
Kyle (I'll be eating at one of these on Sunday or Tuesday evening (Mar 18/20th) with my girlfriend and her two kids (11 & 14 year old). THANKS AGAIN!!!

Answer

2 Amys is great and many others have mentioned it here. 

But tying with 2 Amys is Mia's in Bethesda. I've been there several times and have had fabulous pizza each time--and both the kids and adults who were with me loved it too. The service has been great, too.

Answer

i honestly put Ledo's pizza on par with a thin crust pizza from Dominos... just sayin'

I think the best pizza is the area is by far 2 Amys

Answer

I think what people seem to be missing about Ledo's in Langley Park is that it is a true, original DC metro style of pizza. It's not imitating NY-style (including New Haven variation), it's not imitating Chicago-style, or even Detroit-style (not to mention Philadelphia, St. Louis and a host of other locales). And I think that that counts for...something. Whether you like it or not is almost beside the point. Also, didn't the Italian Inn out on Annapolis Rd (Rt 450 just past ther 450/202 split) have a very similar style of pizza as Ledo's?

Answer

Agree with those who said to avoid Ledos pizza - even the original location. The crust tastes like Bisquick to me and it's rather greasy. I actually like Ella's and it's our office take out spot when we want pizza. The popette pizza was very nice. I was disappointed in Pizzeria Paradiso the last time I went, fairly pricey and wasn't at all memorable. I did enjoy Two Amy's though - very authentic, although it gets pretty crowded quickly, so you might want to arrive when it first opens.

Answer

Ledo's is definitely an acquired taste -- a local specialty dish, like deep-dish Chicago pie, nothing like Napolitan pizza. It's an aberration, as is Generous George's (ugh!). They're in a class with Five Guys burgers (which is, essentially, for shoe-eaters: people who don't like good burgers).

2 Amys, Paradiso, and Vace are competitive. Around Alexandria, Faccia Luna and Quattro Formagii turn out decent New York style pies. A.V. Ristorante (still open?) has always had great crust, and always put too much on top of it. There is no excellent grilled pizza (Al Forno style) except at our house. 8;)

I would disagree with the OP and say that the critical elements of pizza are the dough quality, the dough preparation (thickness, etc.), and the cheese. The sauce is almost incidental on a proper Napolitan or New York pie. The sauce could be either tomato paste-based, or fresh tomato chunks, but the key point is that it should be sparingly applied. Even an outright white or four-cheese pizza can be fabulous.

Answer

Don't sleep on Primo Italiano. There is one in Reston where I work (Also one in Rockville) -- I am sitting here mahnging on a personal sausage pie. The secret to REALLY good pizza, like most good food, is BALANCE. You don't want, for example, the sauce to overwhelm the rest of the ingredients (As it does with BAD pizza like Dominos). You don't want to get kicked in the mouth by oregeno on that first bite.Primo Italiano gets it. This is gourmet pizza. The crust is both crunchy and chewy, like artisan bread. The sauce stays in the background where it belongs. The sausage on this pie is very high quality, not too fatty tasting, and it is chopped, which I love.

Answer

Vace in Cleveland Park. Thin, crunchy crust. Minimalist, but with quality cheese and ingredients (although I wish they used better mushrooms). And not greasy, spongy, or sweet like all the other horrid horrid pizza in this town.

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